Combined squeegee and scouring pad window cleaning implement

ABSTRACT

An improved window cleaning device of the type having a flexible wiper blade and a sponge mounted in a spaced parallel relationship on a head having a manually engageable handle extending therefrom. The improvement comprising a netlike cover of nylon or the like having a pair of permanently set crease lines and secured in a position extending over the sponging surface of the sponge so as to protect the sponge. The net-like cover preferably being interposed between the sponge and the handle on which it is mounted so as to further strengthen the sponge.

United States Patent Mallory 3,724,017 Apr. 3, 1973 COMBINED SQUEEGEE AND SCOURING PAD WINDOW CLEANING IMPLEMENT Inventor: George R. Mallory, Blenheim, On-

tario, Canada Assignee: Mallory Hardware Products Limited, Blenheim, Ontario, Canada Filed: July 1, 1971 Appl. No.: 158,934

Foreign Application Priority Data July 30, 1970 Canada ..089547 US. Cl. ..15/121, 15/232 Int. Cl. ..A47l 1/08 Field of Search ..15/118, 121, 220 R, 220 A,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,406,420 10/1968 Siemund ..15/121 2,249,912 7/1941 Oxley ..15/209 R 2,107,636 2/1938 Kingman.. ..15/244 C UX 2,891,270 6/1959 Reiter ..15/118 X 3,167,805 2/1965 Zuppinger et al. ..401/201 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 659,037 12/1963 Italy ..15/119 A 584,387 10/1959 Canada ..15/121 809,344 7/1951 Germany.... ..15/231 404,890 10/1909 France ..401/121 990,530 6/1951 France ..15/119 A 1,036,428 7/1966 Great Britain ..15/257.05

Primary Examiner-Daniel Blum Attorney-Fetherstonhaugh & Co.

[57] ABSTRACT An improved window cleaning device of the type having a flexible wiper blade and a sponge mounted in a spaced parallel relationship on a head having a manually engageable handle extending therefrom. The improvement comprising a netlike cover of nylon or the like having a pair of permanently set crease lines and secured in a position extending over the sponging surface of the sponge so as to protect the sponge. The net-like cover preferably being interposed between the sponge and the handle on which it is mounted so as to further strengthen the sponge.

10 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTEBAPR 3 1915 3,724,017

INVENTOR. GEORGE R. MALLORY ATTORNEYS COMBINED SQUEEGEE AND SCOURING PAD WINDOW CLEANING IMPLEMENT This invention relates to window cleaning devices. In particular this invention relates to improved window cleaning devices of the type having a flexible wiper blade and a sponge mounted in a spaced parallel relationship on a head having a manually engageable handle extending therefrom.

Window cleaning devices of the type of the present invention are well known and are widely used for cleaning the windows of automobiles and the like. A typical window cleaning device of this type is described and illustrated in my prior Canadian Pat. No. 584,387 which issued Oct. 6, 1959. These devices have proved to be very popular and they are widely used. One of the main problems of this type of device is that the sponged material is damaged easily in use. The sponge is frequently damaged by the windshield wipers of an automobile or other similar protrusions which tend to tear the sponge material. In addition the sponge tends to tear in the compressed area along the edge of the clamping channel which is formed in the head of the washing device. When the sponge is drawn over the surface of a window it tends to bend about the clamping member and frequently, in order to insure that the sponge is firmly anchored, the clamping edges of the channel are formed with teeth which bite into the sponge.

Numerous attempts have been made to provide a sponge with a localized cover or coating of an abrasive material capable of dislodging insects and other particles which become so firmly lodged on the window that they cannot be wiped off with the usual soft sponge. The materials which have been used for this purpose have however tended to prevent the free flow of water to and from the sponge with the result that they have been located in localized areas of the sponge and while they may have been effective in removing insects and the like, they did not protect the entire sponging surface of the sponge and they reduced the effective sponging area.

The present invention overcomes the difficulties of the prior art described above by providing an improved window cleaning device wherein the sponging surface is protected against tearing and the sponge mounting is reinforced. The present invention also provides a simple discontinuous abrasive surface extending over the entire sponging surface while not substantially reducing. the free flow of water to and from the sponge.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, a window cleaning device is improved by providing a net-like cover secured in a position extending over the sponging surface of the sponge to protect the sponging surface. The cover is formed from a tough wear resistant flexible material having a pore size which is sufficiently large to permit the free passage of water therethrough while protectingthe sponging surface by restricting the size of any one exposed area of the sponging surface.

The invention will be more clearly understood after reference to thefollowing detailed specification read in conjunction with the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a pictorial view ofawindow cleaning device according. to an embodiment of the. present invention.

FIG. 2 is a pictorial view of a net-like cover according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the sponge showing the manner in which the sponge and cover are retained in the head and illustrating the manner in which the cover retains the bottom surface of the sponge in a generally flat plain in use.

FIG. 4 is a partially section pictorial view similar to FIG. 3 illustrating an alternative sponge configuration.

In the drawings, the reference numeral 10 refers generally to a window washing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The device consists of a head 12 having a flexible wiper blade member 14 extending outerly therefrom and secured in a channel formed in the head 12 in the usual manner. A handle 16 consisting of a removable wooden hand engaging portion 18 and a front portion 20 is secured to the head 12 by rivets 22. A sponge 24 preferably a synthetic sponge of the cellulose or rubber foam type is secured in the channel 26 which projects outwardly from one side of the head 12. The inner end of the sponge member 24 is slit longitudinally and a stiffening strip 28 formed from a stiff plastic material or metal is located in the slot formed herein and projects generally into the sponge. A net-like cover 30 extends over the sponging surfaces of the sponge and it is clamped within the channel shaped portion of the head between the walls of the channel shaped section and the sponge so as to protect the sponge as will be described hereinafter.

A preferred form of net-like cover is illustrated in FIG. 2 of the drawings. In this embodiment the cover is formed from a material such as nylon which can be permanently creased so as to form the bottom panel 32 and the pair of side wall panels 34. The crease lines are identified by the reference numeral 36 and extend longitudinally of the net-like material so that in a relaxed configuration the net-like material will tend to assume the position shown in FIG. 2. It will be understood that while FIG. 2 of the drawings illustrates a preferred embodiment, many of the advantages can be derived by using a net-like material which does not have the permanently set crease lines. The net-like material may be made from woven or non-woven tough wear resistant flexible materials such as nylon, polypropolyene, rayon, cotton, polyethylene or other similar materials. By way of example and without limiting the scope of the present invention, it has been found that a nylon net according to the present invention may have a pore size sufficient to expose an area of the sponging surface within the range of 0.003 to 0.2 square inches. The thickness of the net-like material may be within the range of 0.01 to 0.0625 inches and the thread or strand width may be within the range of 0.015 to 0.125 inches.

Referring to FIG. 3 of the drawings it will be seen that the channel shaped member in'which the sponge is located consists of two sheet metal sections 40, 42 which are riveted together to form a generally U- shaped channel 44. The upper end of the sponge 28 is compressed into the channel and the net-like material extends over the sponging, surface of sponge in a close fitting relationship. The net-like material is located between the inner compressed end of the sponge and the side walls of the channel 26. Frequently the lower ends of the metal walls of the channel 26 have inwardly directed edges formed with a plurality of spaced inwardly directed-teeth which serve to rigidly secure the sponge in the channel. In the present invention the netlike material serves to prevent the teeth from tearing the sponge over an extended area. While the teeth may puncture the adjacent areas of the sponge, the net-like material serves to hold of the sponge together to prevent the tear from extending laterally over the full width of the sponge.

In FIG. 4 of the drawings, an alternative form of construction is illustrated. Here again the upper end of the sponge is clamped in the U-shaped channel 44 formed between the plates 40 and 42 with the net-like material 30 extending into the U-shaped portion and being disposed between the sponge and the walls of the channel. The structure illustrated in FIG. 4 differs from that illustrated in FIG. 3 in that the net-like material is not formed with the longitudinally extending crease lines illustrated in FIG. 2 of the drawings such that when it is extended around a sponge, the sponge is drawn into a generally circular configuration. This general circular configuration may result even where the sponge has the same configuration as the sponge illustrated in FIG. 3.

Generally the sponges which are used in the window cleaners of the present invention are initially substantially square in cross-section and they assume the configuration shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 when one end thereof is compressed within the U-shaped channel formed in the head. In selecting the width of the bottom panel 32 it is desirable to make it substantially equal to the width of the bottom surface of the sponge. In selecting the pore size of the net-like material, it is desirable to insure that the pores are sufficiently large to permit the free flow of water to and from the sponging surface while also providing a sufficient number of disrupting reinforcing threads to prevent the sponge from being cut assume damaged in use. Preferably the net-like material will have a sufficient thickness so as to provide a plurality of scraping edges projecting outwardly from the sponging surface of the sponge so as to assist in the scraping of coarse material from the surface of a window or the like. The use ofa relatively large pore in an open net-like material is preferred over a fine porous material such as a woven mat as it has been found that a net-like material does not become clogged with dirt in use. The sponge can effectively flush the material picked up by the net to clean the net in use. The net of the present invention has also been found to effectively increase the useful life of the sponge by extending the net to the ends of the sponge and thereby preventing the ends of the sponge from being torn by contact with windshield wipers and the like. The permanently set crease lines formed in the net as shown in FIG. 2 serve to retain the sponge in the configuration shown in FIG. 3 with a substantial area of flat underside as opposed to the normal softer sponge configuration which tends to have a limited sponging area as the result of the distortion of the sponge in use. Again as previously indicated, the net-like material also provides the further improvement in that it serves to remove insects and other material from the surface of the window by providing a multitude of small scraping edges. The open pore structure of the net-like material will not retain any substantial amount of the dirt which is sponged from the window with the result that it will not become a receptacle for abrasive materials capable ofscratching or otherwise damaging the surface across which it is drawn. This is a problem with many of the known devices which have been attached to sponges and it results from the fact that these known devices have a pore structure which does not open directly therethrough to expose the sponging surface.

These and other advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

l. A window cleaning device comprising a head, a flexible wiper blade member, a soft flexible sponge member and means for mounting said blade and sponge member in a longitudinally extending spaced parallel relationship projecting outwardly from opposite sides of said head, the sponge member having an exposed substantially flat outer sponging surface projecting outwardly from the head and a pair of spaced parallel end surfaces a net cover secured to the head in the position extending over said sponging surface of said sponge to protect said sponging surface,

said net cover being formed from a tough wear resistant flexible synthetic fiber and having a net pore size sufficiently large to permit the free passage of water therethrough while protecting the sponging surface by restricting the size of any one exposed area thereof,

said net cover being formed with a pair of permanently set crease lines extending longitudinally thereof to define a front panel, a back panel and a bottom panel connecting said front and back panels, said permanently set crease lines restraining said bottom panel and adjacent portions of said sponge in a generally flat plane and defining clear and distinct spaced parallel edges at each longitudinal edge of said bottom panel.

2. In a device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said sponge is secured to said head by clamping a portion thereof in a longitudinally extending channel formed in said head the further improvement wherein said net is interposed between the clamped portion of the sponge and the channel forming portion of said head to reinforce the clamped portion of the sponge and to anchor the net in said position overlying the sponging surface of said sponge.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net is formed to provide a plurality of shallow scraping edges for scraping the window surface in use.

4. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 including a stiffening strip projecting frontwardly from said head into said sponge.

5. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net extends over the full longitudinal extent of said sponging surface of said sponge.

6. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim wherein said sponge has a generally flat outer surface of a width substantially equal to the width of said bottom panel of said net so as to conform to the generally flat configuration of said bottom panel of said net.

7. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net is made from a material selected from the group consisting of nylon, polypropolyene, rayon, cotton, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride.

8. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net has a pore size sufficient to expose an area of the sponging surface within the range of 0.003 to 0.2 square inches.

9. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net has a thread width in the range of 0.0l5 to 0.125 inches. 5

10. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net has a thickness in the range of 0.01 to 0.0625 inches. 

1. A window cleaning device comprising a head, a flexible wiper blade member, a soft flexible sponge member and means for mounting said blade and sponge member in a longitudinally extending spaced parallel relationship projecting outwardly from opposite sides of said head, the sponge member having an exposed substantially flat outer sponging surface projecting outwardly from the head and a pair of spaced parallel end surfaces a net cover secured to the head in the position extending over said sponging surface of said sponge to protect said sponging surface, said net cover being formed from a tough wear resistant flexible synthetic fiber and having a net pore size sufficiently large to permit the free passage of water therethrough while protecting the sponging surface by restricting the size of any one exposed area thereof, said net cover being formed with a pair of permanently set crease lines extending longitudinally thereof to define a front panel, a back panel and a bottom panel connecting said front and back panels, said permanently set crease lines restraining said bottom panel and adjacent portions of said sponge in a generally flat plane and defining clear and distinct spaced parallel edges at each longitudinal edge of said bottom panel.
 2. In a device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said sponge is secured to said head by clamping a portion thereof in a longitudinally extending channel formed in said head the further improvement wherein said net is interposed between the clamped portion of the sponge and the channel forming portion of said head to reinforce the clamped portion of the sponge and to anchor the net in said position overlying the sponging surface of said sponge.
 3. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net is formed to provide a plurality of shallow scraping edges for scraping the window surface in use.
 4. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 including a stiffening strip projecting frontwardly from said head into said sponge.
 5. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net extends over the full longitudinal extent of said sponging surface of said sponge.
 6. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said sponge has a generally flat outer surface of a width substantially equal to the width of said bottom panel of said net so as to conform to the generally flat configuration of said bottom panel of said net.
 7. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net is made from a material selected from the group consisting of nylon, polypropolyene, rayon, cotton, polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride.
 8. A window cleaning device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net has a pore size sufficient to expose an area of the sponging surface within the range of 0.003 to 0.2 square inches.
 9. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net has a thread width in the range of 0.015 to 0.125 inches.
 10. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said net has a thickness in the range of 0.01 to 0.0625 inches. 